259- A Battle Across Thousand Years (Part 1)

Rhys's heart was pounding wildly at that moment: if he had believed the nonsense about "letting students grow faster by giving them more freedom" and hadn't prepared that life-saving necklace for Daphne, then she would already be dead.

No one could have withstood that terrifying spell unprepared—not even him.

The magical signature of that spell was very familiar to him—it bore the style of an old friend of his.

That confused Rhys. He didn't know what had happened to her...

Could she have suffered the same condition as Rowena Ravenclaw? That would be far too much of a coincidence.

The three of them slowly retreated toward the edge of the stone doors. By now, Rhys had constructed several layers of defensive magic in front of him. Even if the shadow figure attacked again, he was confident he could block the strike for Daphne and Astoria.

Seeing its "prey" attempting to flee, the shadow figure stopped hiding and emerged directly, firing a powerful attack spell straight at Rhys.

This time, Rhys saw the figure clearly as it appeared—it rose straight out from the sand on the ground.

BoOOoM!

A spell shot out like a meteor and struck hard against the multiple defensive layers Rhys had constructed. While bracing against the force of the impact, Rhys summoned his domain magic and formed a wall of thick mud in front of him.

The double-layered defense worked extremely well. After shattering the carefully built magical barriers, the spell lost much of its momentum and merely splashed against the mud wall, raising only a bloom of sludge.

"You two go first, return to the town! I'll catch up shortly!" Without giving Daphne or Astoria a chance to argue, Rhys pushed them out of the hall and waved his hand, sealing the stone doors shut behind them.

He had to hold that shadowy figure here to prevent it from chasing after them.

He couldn't guarantee that this monster was confined to this great hall. If it could leave and give chase, it would turn into a pursuit—and once that happened, it would only be a matter of time before someone got hurt or killed. During a retreat, it would be incredibly difficult for him to ensure the safety of both students.

But a stand-off here was different. Even if it cost him something, he could at least keep the sand-born creature pinned down in this place. Once Daphne and Astoria got far enough away, it would be easy for him to find an opportunity to retreat as well.

After being pushed out of the hall by Rhys, Daphne and Astoria stared at the tightly sealed stone doors, both of their faces looking grim.

"Noo! Rhys!" Daphne couldn't hold back and shouted at the door, slamming her fist against the stone. The force of the rebound left her hand numb, but she didn't feel a thing.

It was the same again…

Once again, she was completely useless!

Daphne couldn't help thinking: if she had blocked that spell with an excellent defensive charm just now, would she have been able to stay and fight alongside him?

"Sister, let's go. Don't waste Rhys's efforts." Astoria grabbed Daphne's arm and sincerely urged her.

That spell just now had made it clear—fighting on that level was something neither she nor her sister could interfere in. Rhys was buying them time. The best way they could help him now was to run. Fast.

Astoria's words snapped Daphne out of her thoughts. She took a deep breath and prepared to leave.

But just as her eyes swept over the stone door in front of her, she suddenly froze—she remembered that Rhys had blasted a large hole in the door earlier, so why had that hole vanished now?

Daphne looked down and found that the floor had also become flat again. A foreboding feeling rose in her chest.

She quickly looked up and saw that the two jackal-headed statues, which had been standing still a moment ago, now had glowing red eyes—their previously destroyed eyes had somehow been restored.

"Astoria, watch out!" she shouted, and instantly cast a defensive spell in front of herself and her sister.

Astoria also noticed the strange behavior of the statues. She immediately responded—also casting a defensive charm while grabbing her sister and pulling her toward the exit.

By now, the two statues had fully awakened and were lunging forward with their spears.

Buried deep underground and sealed from air for so long, the bronze spears were still as sharp as when first forged, thanks to magical enchantments. With one strike, they shattered Daphne's shield charm. Astoria barely managed to block the next attack with her own spell.

Seeing this, neither Daphne nor Astoria hesitated any longer. They cast flight magic and soared into the air, speeding toward the exit of the ruins. The two statues stomped after them with heavy steps, giving relentless chase.

"Why are they chasing us?!" Daphne couldn't help but yell.

"Obviously! Use your brain and think!" Astoria snapped at her sister while casting an obstruction spell behind her.

Those two statues were built to guard against intruders!

Did you really think they'd stop after hitting you once? They'd at least chase you all the way to the palace entrance, wouldn't they?

Although the two statues moved somewhat slowly, each of them stood ten meters tall, and every step they took covered a massive distance—enough to keep right on the girls' heels, preventing them from gaining any distance at all.

The obstruction spells had almost no effect on them. It seemed they could easily power through any resistance caused by the magic.

Astoria gritted her teeth and turned her head, firing an attack spell stored in her bracelet.

Watching her younger sister unleash the stored spell, Daphne felt a pang of guilt and frustration. Her necklace had been destroyed—if it hadn't been, she could've teamed up with Astoria and joined in the counterattack.

But at the same time, she felt a sliver of relief. Now that she'd calmed down, she realized it was the enchantment hidden in that necklace that had saved her life.

Rhys had never mentioned it, but clearly, the necklace had some hidden safety function.

But now it was destroyed… Daphne's emotions were tangled in a complicated mess.

Astoria's spell struck the jackal-headed statue on the left with perfect precision. With a thunderous crash that shook the ground, the statue was blown into two pieces.

The fallen statue blocked the path of the other one, giving Daphne and Astoria the chance to put some distance between themselves and the remaining guardian.

Seeing that it could no longer catch up with the two intruders, the remaining statue pulled a javelin from its back and hurled it at them with great force—but the two girls, both skilled in flight, dodged it with ease.

…

While Daphne and Astoria were battling the jackal-headed statues, Rhys was locked in a fierce struggle of his own.

The shadowy figure was no longer hiding. It now stood openly in the center of the grand hall, casting a barrage of attack spells at Rhys.

Rhys took the opportunity to finally get a clear look at the figure's face.

Though it appeared somewhat aged, he was absolutely certain—it was the face of his old friend, Helga Hufflepuff.

The only difference was… she was a golem made of earth.

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